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Looking solely at the scoreboard yesterday, you’d be forgiven for thinking it was the same old story for Novak Djokovic in 2018.

The Serb suffered a first defeat to a player who had never taken a set off him in the past, falling at the second hurdle with his ranking set to tumble again. For many, it will be tempting to play the same old tune that this is just the end of a once great champion.

But, in truth, there are a lot of positives the 12-time Grand Slam winner can take from his latest defeat.

The Djokovic who lost to Kyle Edmund was unrecognisable from the Djokovic who so tamely surrendered defeat to Taro Daniel at Indian Wells.

In two months there has been stark improvement in the 30-year-old’s performances. He played some really good stuff against Edmund – a player who, to my mind, will soon become one of the most feared prospects on a clay court, particularly in these conditions.

Edmund secured a brilliant win (Picture: NurPhoto via Getty)

Djokovic had few answers to the Brit’s big serve and booming forehand combo in the first set but, as all top players do, he adapted and played a near-flawless second set to level the match.

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The third was close and as Rafael Nadal pointed out after his win over Gael Monfils, it only takes one moment to turn a match at that stage – especially when you’re in a state of mind like Djokovic.

‘I believe a lot in dynamics, in momentum,’ Nadal said. ‘Usually when you have confidence, these things fall on your side. Maybe when you don’t have momentum, you’re in a more difficult moment, other things happen.

‘Look, today Djokovic I think in the 4-3 he thought it was out, it was in. Small things happen that normally when you’re in a good momentum, those things don’t happen. When you don’t have that momentum, you’re in a negative way, these things happen.’

Nadal NurPhoto via Getty Images)

The main worry for Djokovic now is that he is not the one taking the initiative in the most crucial moments of matches.

He’s lost every deciding set this season and his last two against Klizan and Edmund – where he had fought back from a set down – were most telling of all.

Rather than riding the wave of momentum from taking the second set in both matches, the third became a tense affair with just one break at the death deciding it. It’s in these clutch moments that Djokovic is struggling.

For a player who was so mentally strong and capable of striking when it mattered most, this is a big worry. But it’s by no means a problem without a solution.

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‘Well, you know, look, there are obvious things that are not working well for me,’ Djokovic said.

Djokovic lost another deciding set (Picture: NurPhoto via Getty)

‘But I have to keep working on them and pray that – and hope that my game will get stronger, get better as definitely as the matches, you know, go the distance.’

Though it may be a cliche, it’s a process. Roger Federer may have warped our expectations of how successful a player should be immediately after an injury comeback by winning three Grand Slam titles in just over a year, but it’s worth remembering that he also went the best part of five years without winning a major. Confidence is great when you have it, but the hardest thing to recover once it’s gone.

The mechanics have improved substantially after that ‘small medical intervention’ – what’s important now is match play. The more he competes in the kind of situations he’s been in against Edmund and Klizan, the better he will get.

Federer went five years without winning a major (Picture: Getty)

There will be further bumps along the way – and with points to defend in Rome, Roland Garros, Eastbourne and Wimbledon, his ranking will likely tumble further.

But if he continues improving at this rate and with a bit of good fortune, narrow losses like these will soon turn to wins. Confidence will grow. And come the second half of the year, with no points to defend, we may well see Djokovic close to returning to his prime.

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Patience remains key. Although he was naturally disappointed in defeat, he already seems more settled back working alongside Marian Vajda than at the start of the year with Andre Agassi and Radek Stepanek. Vast improvements are noted.

Results may not show that just yet, but he’s certainly on the right track.